ODUM ©
Joshua Abejo
This speculative project explores how technology has compromised our understanding of nature. Through branding, publication design, and 3D, this project helps people begin to question their own relationship with nature and how technology has impacted it.
Since the beginning of time, humans have relied on the fundamental need and affiliation towards nature. However, with the loss of the nature and people living in the Metaverse, there is no longer a bond between both. By choosing to advance the Metaverse over saving our planet, we compromised our relationship and understanding of nature, while accepting the substitute of accessing nature through technology.
By the early 2040s, due to inadequate government regulations, our incessant consumer habits, hyper capitalism, and more, people to eventually gave up on trying to save the planet and to instead focus on establishing themselves in the Metaverse. In the 2050s, the creation of Metaverse hubs, AR/VR research and production, and the shift in cities’ infrastructures has led to natural resources, such as fossil fuels, metals, minerals, and timber to reach critically low levels. Glaciers completely melted away causing sea levels to rise and flood many regions to be lost forever. An increase in intensity and duration of heat waves caused many countries to become inhabitable, and usable water for consumption and agriculture became scarce. As more people joined the Metaverse, concerns for the planet continued to decline from the public until it was practically non-existent, leading to a total collapse— ushering in an immense loss of biodiversity with many flora and fauna species going extinct.
The deterioration of Earth altered the way people lived. When many regions became inhabitable, people migrated to the remaining livable areas. Populations moved north, away from the equator and into northern domains with low temperatures and breathable air. The population reached ten billion by the time of the migration, leading to insufficient room for everyone. Most people now live in dense metropolitan areas in capsule style apartments since the only necessities are a single bed and their personal VR equipment to access the Metaverse. Washrooms are communal
to save space in the buildings, and kitchens no longer exist as loss of agriculture and livestock plummeted, forcing people to consume liquids that contain the appropriate amount of nutrients.
Over the duration of earth’s collapse, governments and private botanists archived various plant species, mineral samples, and other natural relics that have since gone extinct. We have purchased these assets to create our own extensive archive for research and public use.
At ODUM, we believe in a touch-based experience. With one of our main services being the Nature Pods, humans can re-establish their innate feelings of biophilia with their senses and help them evaluate how technology has altered their relationship with nature.
Our second main service is our Geo Spaces. With the assets we acquired, we have created popular environments that were lost. Access to the Geo Spaces will allow people to experience what it was like to live on Earth before its destruction. Being surrounded by nature, people will be able to rejuvenate their bodies and unlock reality in purest form with all the benefits that nature has to offer.
Once we have established ourselves, we will control all human relations with the natural world and be the sole arbitrator. Through us, people will once again appreciate the long-lasting positive effects of nature and take the steps to rebuild our planet with an environment focused society.
Renew your humanity at ODUM.
Nature Pods
At Odum, we believe that a touch-based experience will help humans get back to a nature-focused world through our innate feelings of biophilia. We house various flora and minerals in our Nature Pods that have been carefully developed in our studios and research labs. This ensures our natural artifacts are preserved properly to live through Earth’s new climate. We invite you to touch, hold, and interact with our extensive archive and explore your nature centered intuitions. This will be your first step in rebuilding a connection with nature, and understanding how it is not just a luxury, but a necessity. For decades, nature has been a way to help the body heal and with the Nature Pods, you will be able to experience the effects that the natural world can have on your life.
Pocket Nature Pods
With the Pocket Nature Pod, you will be able to collect and take home selected plant, mineral, and soil samples while you explore the Geo Spaces. Rest assured, these samples will last a considerable amount of time, as we’ve selected samples that will be able to thrive in Earth’s new climate once it leaves our facilities. Our Pockets Nature Pods are also designed to regulate the temperature within the pockets through a natural balancing process. Through this, you can build a more personable and intimate relationship with nature from the comfort of your home. This experience invites you to build on your innate curiosity to explore the natural world and to acclimate your sensibilities to the new nature centered world we are constructing at Odum.
Geo Spaces
Our Geo Spaces are physical recreations of lost environments from across the globe. With our extensive archive of flora and mineral samples, we were able to create a diverse and accurate range of biomes. Through our research, the Geo Spaces can carefully contain and preserve the environments with precise temperatures, humidity, oxygen levels, and other similar conditions that reflect the true climate of those spaces. The importance of this engagement in the Geo Space is to be able to experience what it was like to be in these environments that have been lost for years. Wanting to surround ourselves in nature is within our DNA, and for decades, it has been a way to relax our mind and rejuvenate our body. With the Geo Spaces, you will be able to unlock reality in the purest form and receive all the benefits that the natural world has to offer.
